JP7712903B2 - SUBSTRATE PROCESSING APPARATUS, SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE MANUFACTURING METHOD, PROGRAM, AND SUBSTRATE PROCESSING METHOD - Google Patents

Description

The present disclosure relates to a substrate processing apparatus, a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device , a program , and a substrate processing method .

As part of the manufacturing process for semiconductor devices, multiple processes may be performed on a substrate in multiple processing furnaces (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Publication No. 5-17879

As mentioned above, when multiple processes are performed on substrates in multiple processing furnaces, the substrates that have completed processing may have to wait for a certain period of time before the next process can be performed. During this waiting time, the substrate surface may be exposed to the atmosphere, and particles may adhere to the substrate surface.

This disclosure provides technology that can improve throughput by suppressing oxidation of the substrate surface and particle adhesion.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure,
a plurality of processing chambers each performing a preset process on a substrate carried therein;
a transfer chamber adjacent to the plurality of processing chambers and maintained under reduced pressure;
a waiting chamber that can communicate with the transfer chamber under reduced pressure, includes a plurality of support parts that can support a plurality of substrates after processing in a first processing chamber of the plurality of processing chambers is completed, and is configured to supply an inert gas to every predetermined number of substrates among the plurality of substrates supported by the plurality of support parts;
The present invention provides a technique having the following features:

This disclosure makes it possible to suppress oxidation of the substrate surface and adhesion of particles, thereby improving throughput.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a schematic configuration example of a substrate processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present disclosure. 2A and 2B are cross-sectional side and top views of an example of a waiting room of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration of a control unit of the substrate processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present disclosure. FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating an example of a substrate processing process according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of an operation of the substrate processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present disclosure.

(1) Configuration of the Substrate Processing Apparatus Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present disclosure will be described mainly with reference to Fig. 1 to Fig. 5. Note that all of the drawings used in the following description are schematic, and the dimensional relationships of the elements, the ratios of the elements, etc. shown in the drawings do not necessarily match the actual ones. Furthermore, the dimensional relationships of the elements, the ratios of the elements, etc. between multiple drawings do not necessarily match.

Figure 1 is a top cross-sectional view of a substrate processing apparatus 10 for carrying out a manufacturing method for a semiconductor device. The substrate processing apparatus 10 is a cluster type apparatus, and the transport device is divided into a vacuum side and an atmospheric side. In addition, the substrate processing apparatus 10 uses a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod: hereinafter referred to as a pod) 100 as a carrier for transporting a wafer 200 as a substrate.

(Vacuum side configuration)
1, the substrate processing apparatus 10 includes a first transfer chamber 103 that can withstand a pressure (negative pressure) less than atmospheric pressure, such as a vacuum state. A housing 101 of the first transfer chamber 103 has a pentagonal shape in a plan view, for example, and is formed in a box shape with both the upper and lower ends closed.

A first substrate transfer machine 112 for transferring the wafer 200 is provided in the first transfer chamber 103.

Of the five side walls of the housing 101, the one located on the front side (the lower side in FIG. 1) is connected to a load lock chamber 122 and a load lock chamber 123 serving as a waiting chamber via gate valves 126 and 127, respectively. The load lock chambers 122 and 123, which will be described in detail later, are configured to be capable of simultaneously carrying in the wafer 200, waiting for the wafer 200, and carrying out the wafer 200, and each is configured to withstand negative pressure.

Of the five side walls of the housing 101 of the first transfer chamber 103, the four side walls located at the rear (back side, upper side in Figure 1) are adjacently connected to processing vessels 202a to 202d via gate valves 70a to 70d, respectively, for performing the desired processing on the wafer 200.

(Atmospheric side configuration)
A second transfer chamber 121 capable of transferring the wafer 200 under atmospheric pressure is connected to the front side of the load lock chambers 122, 123 via gate valves 128, 129. The second transfer chamber 121 is provided with a second substrate transfer machine 124 for transferring the wafer 200.

A notch alignment device 106 is provided on the left side of the second transport chamber 121. The notch alignment device 106 may also be an orientation flat alignment device.

At the front side of the housing 125 of the second transfer chamber 121, a substrate loading/unloading port 134 for loading/unloading the wafer 200 to/from the second transfer chamber 121 and a pod opener 108 are provided. On the opposite side of the substrate loading/unloading port 134 from the pod opener 108, i.e., on the outside of the housing 125, a load port (IO stage) 105 is provided. The pod opener 108 has a closure that can open and close the cap 100a of the pod 100 and close the substrate loading/unloading port 134. By opening and closing the cap 100a of the pod 100 placed on the load port 105, it is possible to load and unload the wafer 200 to/from the pod 100. The pod 100 is supplied to and unloaded from the load port 105 by an in-process transport device (such as an OHT) not shown.

(Configuration of Processing Container)
The processing vessels 202a to 202d include processing chambers 201a to 201d, respectively. The processing chambers 201a to 201d are configured to communicate with each other under reduced pressure via gate valves 70a to 70d and the first transfer chamber 103. In the processing chambers 201a to 201d, a preset process is performed on the loaded wafer 200. That is, in the processing vessels 202a to 202d, different processes are performed on the wafer 200.

The processing vessels 202a to 202d are a mixture of single-wafer processing apparatuses and batch-type substrate processing apparatuses. The single-wafer processing apparatuses include a single-wafer processing chamber that performs single-wafer processing on one or several wafers 200 at a time. The batch-type substrate processing apparatuses include a batch processing chamber that performs batch processing on several wafers 200 at a time. In other words, the processing chambers 201a to 201d are a mixture of single-wafer processing chambers and batch processing chambers.

(Load lock chamber configuration)
Next, the load lock chambers 122 and 123 will be described. The load lock chambers 122 and 123 are provided adjacent to one side of the first transfer chamber 103, which is the vacuum side, via gate valves 126 and 127, respectively. Also, the load lock chambers 122 and 123 are provided adjacent to one side of the second transfer chamber 121, which is the atmosphere side, via gate valves 128 and 129, respectively. The load lock chambers 122 and 123 are configured to communicate with the processing chambers 201a to 201d in a reduced pressure state via the gate valves 126 and 127 and the first transfer chamber 103. That is, the load lock chambers 122 and 123 can communicate with the first transfer chamber 103 in a reduced pressure state via the gate valves 126 and 127. Also, the load lock chambers 122 and 123 are configured to communicate with the second transfer chamber 121 in an atmospheric pressure state via the gate valves 128 and 129.

The load lock chamber 122 stores unprocessed wafers 200 before they are transferred to any of the processing chambers 201a to 201d. The load lock chamber 123 stores processed wafers 200 that have been processed in at least one of the processing chambers 201a to 201d. In other words, the load lock chambers 122 and 123 are storage chambers that temporarily store unprocessed or processed wafers 200, respectively.

Figures 2(A) and 2(B) are explanatory diagrams that show an example of the general configuration of the load lock chamber 123.

The load lock chamber 123 is used as a waiting chamber in which wafers 200 that have been processed in at least one of the processing vessels 202a to 202d are kept waiting before the next process is performed. The load lock chamber 123 has a housing 301, a number of support parts 302 that can each support a number of wafers 200 approximately horizontally in the vertical direction within the housing 301, and an inert gas flow path 303 and an inert gas supply port 304 that supply an inert gas into the housing 301.

As shown in FIG. 2A, the inert gas flow path 303 is formed vertically on both side walls of the housing 301. A plurality of inert gas supply ports 304 are formed substantially horizontally in the vertical direction at height positions corresponding to the plurality of wafers 200 in the load lock chamber 123. The inert gas supply ports 304 are formed to communicate between the inert gas flow path 303 and the inside of the load lock chamber 123.

As shown in FIG. 2B, multiple inert gas supply ports 304 are formed in the width direction of the load lock chamber 123. The inert gas supply ports 304 are formed at an angle toward the exhaust port 305 from the center of the wafer 200. In other words, the inert gas that flows through the inert gas flow path 303 is supplied approximately horizontally to the surface of each wafer 200 from both sides of the wafer 200.

An inert gas supply pipe 306 is connected to the inert gas flow path 303. The inert gas supply pipe 306 is provided with, in order from the upstream side of the gas flow, an inert gas supply source 307, a mass flow controller (MFC) 308 which is a flow rate controller (flow rate control section), and a valve 309 which is an on-off valve. An inert gas supply system 314 is mainly constituted by the inert gas supply pipe 306, the MFC 308, and the valve 309. The inert gas supply source 307 may be included in the inert gas supply system 314.

The inert gas is supplied from the inert gas supply pipe 306 to the load lock chamber 123 via the inert gas flow path 303 and the inert gas supply port 304. The inert gas acts as a purge gas.

An exhaust port 305 for exhausting the atmosphere in the load lock chamber 123 is provided on the bottom surface of the housing 301 on the side facing the first transfer chamber 103. That is, the exhaust port 305 is configured to exhaust the inert gas supplied into the load lock chamber 123. This allows the inert gas supplied to the surface of the wafer 200 to flow without stagnation, and can suppress re-adhesion of particles onto the wafer 200 waiting in the load lock chamber 123. The exhaust port 305 may be provided on the lower side of the housing 301 or in the center of the bottom surface, etc.

An exhaust pipe 310 is connected to the exhaust port 305. A vacuum pump 313 as a vacuum exhaust device is connected to the exhaust pipe 310 via a pressure sensor 311 as a pressure detector (pressure detection unit) that detects the pressure inside the housing 301 and an APC (Auto Pressure Controller) valve 312 as a pressure regulator (pressure adjustment unit). The APC valve 312 can perform vacuum exhaust and stop vacuum exhaust inside the housing 301 by opening and closing the valve while the vacuum pump 313 is operating, and is further configured to adjust the pressure inside the housing 301 by adjusting the valve opening based on pressure information detected by the pressure sensor 311 while the vacuum pump 313 is operating. An exhaust system 315 is mainly configured by the exhaust pipe 310, the APC valve 312, and the pressure sensor 311. The vacuum pump 313 may be included in the exhaust system 315.

In the load lock chamber 123, multiple wafers 200 are supported in multiple stages on multiple supports 302, each in a horizontal position and aligned vertically with their centers aligned, i.e., arranged at intervals. The housing 301 and supports 302 are, for example, integrally configured and made of a heat-resistant material such as quartz or SiC.

The load lock chamber 123 is used as a waiting chamber for the wafers 200 being processed. In the load lock chamber 123, the wafers 200 are placed on the support parts 302 after processing in any of the processing chambers 201a to 201d is completed and left waiting. In the present disclosure, an inert gas supply port 304 is provided for each slot (i.e., for each wafer) and an inert gas is supplied to the wafers 200 on each support part 302. However, the inert gas may be supplied to the wafers 200 every predetermined number of slots (i.e., every predetermined number of wafers) among the multiple wafers 200 kept waiting. For example, the inert gas may be supplied every two slots or every three slots.

(2) Configuration of the Controller Next, the configuration of the controller 500 serving as a control unit (control means) will be described.

The controller 500, which serves as a control unit (control means), controls each of the above-mentioned parts to perform the substrate processing process described below.

As shown in FIG. 3, the controller 500 is configured as a computer equipped with a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 500a, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 500b, a storage device 500c, and an I/O port 500d. The RAM 500b, the storage device 500c, and the I/O port 500d are configured to be able to exchange data with the CPU 500a via an internal bus 500e. An input/output device 501 configured as, for example, a touch panel, and a display device 472 such as a display are connected to the controller 500.

The storage device 500c is composed of, for example, a flash memory, a HDD (Hard Disk Drive), etc. A control program for controlling the operation of the substrate processing apparatus and a process recipe in which the procedures and conditions of the substrate processing described later are described are readably stored in the storage device 500c. The process recipe is a combination of procedures in the substrate processing process described later that are executed by the controller 500 to obtain a predetermined result, and functions as a program. Hereinafter, the process recipe and the control program are collectively referred to as simply a program. In addition, when the word program is used in this specification, it may include only the process recipe, only the control program, or both. The RAM 500b is configured as a memory area (work area) in which the programs and data read by the CPU 500a are temporarily stored.

The I/O port 500d is connected to the MFC 308, the valve 309, the pressure sensor 311, the APC valve 312, the vacuum pump 313, the gate valves 70a to 70d, 126 to 129, the first substrate transfer machine 103, the second substrate transfer machine 124, etc.

The CPU 500a is configured to read and execute a control program from the storage device 500c, and to read a process recipe from the storage device 500c in response to input of an operation command from the input/output device 501, etc. The CPU 500a is configured to control the wafer 200 transport and substrate transfer operations by the first substrate transfer machine 103 and the second substrate transfer machine 124, the inert gas supply and exhaust operations by the MFC 308, valve 309, pressure sensor 311, APC valve 312, and vacuum pump 313 in the load lock chamber 123, the temperature increase and decrease operations by the heaters in the processing vessels 202a to 202d, the pressure adjustment operation by the APC valve, the gas flow rate adjustment operation by the MFC and valve, etc., in accordance with the contents of the read process recipe.

The controller 500 may be configured as a general-purpose computer, not limited to a dedicated computer. For example, the controller 500 according to this embodiment can be configured by preparing an external storage device (e.g., a magnetic tape, a magnetic disk such as a flexible disk or a hard disk, an optical disk such as a CD or a DVD, an optical magnetic disk such as an MO, a semiconductor memory such as a USB memory (USB Flash Drive) or a memory card) 502 storing the above-mentioned program, and installing the program in a general-purpose computer using the external storage device 502. The means for supplying the program to the computer is not limited to supplying the program via the external storage device 502. For example, the program may be supplied without going through the external storage device 502, using a communication means such as the Internet or a dedicated line. The storage device 500c and the external storage device 502 are configured as computer-readable recording media. Hereinafter, these are collectively referred to simply as recording media. In addition, when the term recording medium is used in this specification, it may include only the storage device 500c alone, only the external storage device 502 alone, or both.

(3) Substrate Processing Step Next, as one step of a semiconductor manufacturing process, a step of processing the wafer 200 from the start of processing in the processing vessel 202a to the end of processing in the processing vessel 202d using the substrate processing apparatus 10 having the above-mentioned configuration will be described with reference to Figures 4 and 5. In the following description, the operation of each part constituting the substrate processing apparatus 10 is controlled by a controller 500. Also, different processes are performed in the processing vessels 202a to 202d.

(First process: S11)
First, the unprocessed wafer 200 stored in the load lock chamber 122 is loaded into the processing chamber 201a of the processing vessel 202a by the first substrate transfer machine 112. After the wafer 200 is loaded into the processing chamber 201a, the first substrate transfer machine 112 is retreated to the outside of the processing vessel 202a, and the gate valve 70a is closed to hermetically seal the inside of the processing vessel 202a. Then, a first process is performed on the wafer 200 in the processing chamber 201a.

(Waiting: S12)
Next, the gate valve 70a is opened to communicate the processing chamber 201a with the first transfer chamber 103. Then, when the processing vessel 202b for performing the next second processing is in use, the wafer 200 after the first processing is completed is transferred from the processing chamber 201a to the load lock chamber 123 by the first substrate transfer machine 112 and placed on each support part 302. Then, the wafer 200 after the first processing is made to wait until the processing in the processing vessel 202b is completed. Here, when the processing vessel 202a is a single-wafer type substrate processing apparatus, each time a single-wafer processing is performed on one or several wafers 200, the wafer 200 is placed on each support part 302 of the load lock chamber 123 and made to wait. That is, the processing on the next wafer 200 can be performed in the vacant processing vessel 202a. Also, when the processing vessel 202a is a batch type substrate processing apparatus, the wafer 200 is placed on each support part 302 and made to wait after the batch processing is performed on a plurality of wafers 200.

At this time, an inert gas is supplied into the load lock chamber 123. Specifically, the valve 309 and the APC valve 312 are opened, and the MFC 308 is controlled to supply an inert gas from the inert gas supply pipe 306 to the wafers 200 on each support 302 in the load lock chamber 123 via the inert gas flow path 303 and the inert gas supply port 304. At this time, the APC 312 controls the pressure inside the housing 301 to a predetermined pressure in a reduced pressure state.

The APC valve 312 adjusts the conductance of the exhaust pipe 310 to control the exhaust flow rate of the inert gas in the load lock chamber 123 by the vacuum pump 313, and maintains the inside of the load lock chamber 123 at a predetermined pressure. As a result, the inert gas in the load lock chamber 123 is removed from the load lock chamber 123 by the vacuum pump 313 via the exhaust port 305 and the exhaust pipe 310.

In this way, in the load lock chamber 123, an inert gas is supplied under reduced pressure to the wafers 200 waiting on each support part 302. Note that the operation of each part in the waiting process (S14, S16) described below is the same as in this step (S12), so detailed explanations will be omitted below.

(Second process: S13)
Next, when the previous process in the processing vessel 202b is completed and the processing vessel 202b becomes available, the first processed wafer 200 waiting in the load lock chamber 123 is transferred into the processing chamber 201b by the first substrate transfer machine 112. After the wafer 200 is transferred into the processing chamber 201b, the first substrate transfer machine 112 is retreated to the outside of the processing vessel 202b, and the gate valve 70b is closed to hermetically seal the inside of the processing vessel 202b. Then, the second process is performed on the wafer 200 in the processing chamber 201b.

(Waiting: S14)
Subsequently, the gate valve 70b is opened to connect the processing chamber 201b to the first transfer chamber 103. Then, when the processing container 202c for performing the next third processing is in use, the wafer 200 after the second processing is transferred from the processing chamber 201b to the load lock chamber 123 by the first substrate transfer machine 112 and placed on each support 302. Then, the wafer 200 after the second processing is made to wait while supplying and evacuating an inert gas to the wafer 200 after the second processing until the processing in the processing container 202c is completed.

(Third process: S15)
Next, when the previous process in the processing vessel 202c is completed and the processing vessel 202c becomes available, the wafer 200 after the second process waiting in the load lock chamber 123 is transferred into the processing chamber 201c by the first substrate transfer machine 112. After the wafer 200 is transferred into the processing chamber 201c, the first substrate transfer machine 112 is retreated to the outside of the processing vessel 202c, and the gate valve 70c is closed to hermetically seal the inside of the processing vessel 202c. Then, the third process is performed on the wafer 200 in the processing chamber 201c.

(Standby: S16)
Subsequently, the gate valve 70c is opened to connect the processing chamber 201c to the first transfer chamber 103. Then, when the processing container 202d for performing the next fourth processing is in use, the wafer 200 after the third processing is transferred from the processing chamber 201c to the load lock chamber 123 by the first substrate transfer machine 112 and placed on each support 302. Then, the wafer 200 after the third processing is made to wait while supplying and evacuating an inert gas to the wafer 200 after the third processing until the processing in the processing container 202d is completed.

(Fourth process: S17)
Next, when the previous process in the processing vessel 202d is completed and the processing vessel 202d becomes available, the wafer 200 after the third process waiting in the load lock chamber 123 is transferred into the processing chamber 201d by the first substrate transfer machine 112. After the wafer 200 is transferred into the processing chamber 201d, the first substrate transfer machine 112 is retreated to the outside of the processing vessel 202d, and the gate valve 70d is closed to seal the inside of the processing vessel 202d. Then, the fourth process is performed on the wafer 200 in the processing chamber 201d.

After the fourth process is performed, the gate valve 70d is opened to connect the processing chamber 201d to the first transfer chamber 103. The wafer 200 after the fourth process is then transferred from the processing chamber 201d to the load lock chamber 123 by the first substrate transfer machine 112. After closing the gate valve 70d, the gate valve 129 is opened to connect the load lock chamber 123 to the second transfer chamber 121. The wafer 200 after the first to fourth processes is then transferred out of the load lock chamber 123 by the second substrate transfer machine 124.

When multiple processes are performed on a wafer using multiple processing chambers, the processed wafer 200 may have to wait for a while before undergoing the next process. As disclosed herein, by temporarily storing the processed wafer 200 in the load lock chamber 123, the first substrate transfer machine 112 does not have to wait, and the free processing vessel can be used. This allows for smooth processing and improved throughput. In addition, by supplying an inert gas to the surface of the wafer 200 waiting in the load lock chamber 123 under reduced pressure, the surface of the waiting substrate can be protected from oxidation and the like, and the adhesion of particles to the substrate surface can be suppressed.

[Other aspects]
Although one embodiment of the present disclosure has been specifically described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

For example, in the above embodiment, the processes are performed on the wafer 200 in the order of the processing vessels 202a to 202d, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. In other words, the order and number of processes are not limited to this, and the present disclosure can be applied to cases where at least two processing vessels are used to process the wafer 200. This modified example also provides the same effects as the above embodiment.

In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the load lock chamber 123 is used as a waiting chamber, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. That is, the load lock chamber 122 may be used as a waiting chamber, or a waiting chamber may be provided separately from the load lock chambers 122 and 123. In this modified example, the same effects as those in the above-mentioned embodiment can be obtained.

In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, an exhaust port 305 for exhausting the inert gas is provided on the first transfer chamber 103 side of the bottom surface of the load lock chamber 123 or on the lower side of the load lock chamber 123, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. That is, the exhaust port 305 may be provided in the center of the bottom surface of the load lock chamber 123, on the second transfer chamber 121 side of the bottom surface of the load lock chamber 123, on the top surface of the load lock chamber 123, etc. The same effect as the above-mentioned embodiment can be obtained in this modified example as well.

It is also preferable that the recipes used for each process are prepared individually according to the process content and stored in the storage device 500c via an electric communication line or the external storage device 502. Then, when starting each process, it is preferable that the CPU 500a appropriately selects an appropriate recipe from the multiple recipes stored in the storage device 500c according to the process content. This makes it possible to reproducibly form films of various film types, composition ratios, film qualities, and thicknesses using a single substrate processing device. It is also possible to reduce the burden on the operator and quickly start each process while avoiding operational errors.

The above-mentioned recipes do not necessarily have to be created anew, but may be prepared, for example, by modifying an existing recipe that has already been installed in the substrate processing apparatus. When modifying a recipe, the modified recipe may be installed in the substrate processing apparatus via an electric communication line or a recording medium on which the recipe is recorded. Also, an existing recipe that has already been installed in the substrate processing apparatus may be directly modified by operating the input/output device 501 provided in the existing substrate processing apparatus.

In the above embodiment, the processing chambers 201a to 201d are described as being a mixture of a single wafer processing chamber and a batch processing chamber, but the present disclosure is not limited to this. In other words, the processing chambers do not have to be a mixture of a single wafer processing chamber and a batch processing chamber, and may be composed of only a single wafer processing chamber or only a batch processing chamber. In addition, the processing vessels 202a to 202d may be substrate processing apparatuses having a hot wall type processing furnace, substrate processing apparatuses having a cold wall type processing furnace, or other substrate processing apparatuses.

When using these substrate processing apparatuses, each process can be performed using the same process procedures and conditions as in the above-mentioned embodiment, and the same effects as in the above-mentioned embodiment can be obtained.

The above-mentioned aspects and variations can be used in appropriate combination. The processing procedures and processing conditions in this case can be, for example, the same as those of the above-mentioned aspects and variations.

10 Substrate processing apparatus 123 Load lock chamber (waiting chamber)
200 Wafer (substrate)
201a, 201b, 201c, 201d Processing chamber 302 Support part

Claims (15)

a plurality of processing chambers each performing a preset process on a substrate carried therein;
a first transfer chamber adjacent to the plurality of processing chambers and maintained under reduced pressure;
a waiting chamber capable of communicating with the first transfer chamber under a reduced pressure and including a plurality of support parts capable of supporting a plurality of substrates after the processing in a first processing chamber among the plurality of processing chambers is completed;
a second transfer chamber, which is in communication with the waiting chamber on a side different from the first transfer chamber and is maintained at atmospheric pressure;
An exhaust port provided on a bottom surface or a lower side surface of the waiting chamber for exhausting an inert gas;
a plurality of inert gas supply ports formed in the vertical and width directions on both sides of the waiting chamber, the inert gas supply ports being formed obliquely toward the exhaust port from the center of the substrate supported by the plurality of supports, and supplying the inert gas to a surface of each substrate supported by the plurality of supports;
A substrate processing apparatus comprising: The substrate processing apparatus of claim 1, wherein each of the processing chambers performs a different process. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a substrate that has been waiting in the standby chamber is carried into a second processing chamber among the plurality of processing chambers, and processing is performed on the carried-in substrate in the second processing chamber. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of processing chambers are a mixture of single-wafer processing chambers and batch processing chambers. performing a preset process on the substrate carried in each of the plurality of processing chambers;
a step of supplying the inert gas to a surface of each of the substrates supported by the plurality of supports from inert gas supply ports which are formed in the vertical and width directions on both sides of the standby chamber and are formed obliquely toward an exhaust port which exhausts an inert gas and is provided below a bottom or side surface of the standby chamber and which exhausts an inert gas, for every predetermined number of substrates among the substrates supported by the plurality of supports after the processing in the first processing chamber of the plurality of processing chambers is completed;
A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device having the above structure. 6. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 5 , wherein in the step of supplying the inert gas, the inert gas is exhausted from an exhaust port provided at a bottom or a lower side of the waiting chamber while the substrate is held in the waiting chamber. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 5 , wherein different processes are carried out in the plurality of processing chambers. 6. The method of claim 5 , further comprising the steps of: loading the substrate held in the waiting chamber into a second processing chamber among the plurality of processing chambers; and performing processing on the substrate in the second processing chamber. 6. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 5 , wherein either single wafer processing or batch processing is carried out in the plurality of processing chambers. a step of performing a preset process on the substrate carried in each of the plurality of processing chambers;
a standby chamber communicating under reduced pressure with a first transfer chamber adjacent to the plurality of processing chambers and maintained under reduced pressure, and communicating with a second transfer chamber under atmospheric pressure , supplying the inert gas to a surface of each of the plurality of substrates supported by the plurality of supports from inert gas supply ports formed in the vertical and width directions on both side surfaces of the standby chamber for every predetermined number of substrates among the plurality of substrates supported by the plurality of supports after processing in a first processing chamber of the plurality of processing chambers is completed, the inert gas being supplied to a surface of each of the substrates supported by the plurality of supports from inert gas supply ports formed obliquely toward an exhaust port that is provided below a bottom or side surface of the standby chamber and that exhausts an inert gas, the exhaust port being disposed below a center of the substrate supported by the support ;
A program for causing a computer to execute the above in a substrate processing apparatus. 11. The program according to claim 10 , wherein in the step of supplying the inert gas, the inert gas is exhausted from an exhaust port provided in a bottom or a lower side of the waiting chamber while the substrate is held in the waiting chamber. The program according to claim 10 , wherein different processes are executed in the plurality of processing chambers. The program according to claim 10 , further comprising the steps of: loading the substrate held in the standby chamber into a second processing chamber among the plurality of processing chambers; and subjecting the substrate to processing in the second processing chamber. The program according to claim 10 , wherein either single wafer processing or batch processing is performed in the plurality of processing chambers. performing a preset process on the substrate carried in each of the plurality of processing chambers;
a step of supplying the inert gas to a surface of each of the substrates supported by the plurality of supports from inert gas supply ports which are formed in the vertical and width directions on both sides of the standby chamber and are formed obliquely toward an exhaust port which exhausts an inert gas and is provided below a bottom or side surface of the standby chamber and which exhausts an inert gas, for every predetermined number of substrates among the substrates supported by the plurality of supports after the processing in the first processing chamber of the plurality of processing chambers is completed;
A substrate processing method comprising the steps of: